Live from the MSC World Europa, June 9th from Barcelona

[Nikodemos]

I'll flesh this out with the days prior to the embarkation, but here's the detail on our first day on the ship.  I'll try to answer any questions.  Our itinerary includes Barcelona, Marseilles, Genoa, Naples, Messina, La Valletta (Malta), Sea Day and then back to Barcelona.

 

Friday, June 9th, 2023 - Embarkation Day from Barcelona

 

We walked from our AirBnB on the north side of Las Ramblas to Terminal A at the cruise port.  I expected the walk to be shorter, but the MSC terminal is over a causeway so it’s a bit longer than what I expected.  We’ll definitely take a bus or taxi back to Las Ramblas when we come back to Barcelona.  We just walked up to the baggage area for YC guests and they immediately took us upstairs to a waiting room, offered us drinks and processed our check-in.  We got our room cards, wrist bands (that work like the card for everything on the ship), retook our pictures (even though we had uploaded ones on the web check-in) and then escorted us to the ship.  We were supposed to have a check-in time at 11am, but as far as I can tell, that doesn’t matter for folks with YC rooms.  Once on the ship, we were taken to the Top Sail lounge where we were offered another drink and they helped us get our mobile phones hooked to the ship wi-fi.

 

I thought I had read that the YC package only included one wi-fi device per room, but they informed us it was two devices per person per room (4 devices in total).  This was nice since I had my Chromebook with me and my wife had her iPad.  Service was decent, but being satellite Internet service, the lag is noticeable.  Ping rates for Minecraft were about 385ms.

 

It was just after 12pm when we were introduced to our butler (Khin), who escorted us to our room.  We’re noticing that the ship's employees come from a wider array of countries than our previous two cruises which were primarily Philipinos.  We saw employees from Kenya, Mauritius, Indonesia and Philippines so far.  I imagine that the multi-lingual requirement had an impact on that.  French, Spanish, Italian, German and English are the major languages spoken aboard.

 

Arriving at our rooms, we noticed that both US and European electrical ports were available on the wall across from the bed (ocean view cabins).  The US electrical plug also came with USB-A ports.  One USB-A port is available on either side of the bed.

 

The walk-in shower in the bathroom is the biggest I’ve seen on a cruise ship (our experience is limited to the Holland America and Disney ships).

 

Insulated cups are provided to fill sodas around the ship.

 

We were told that for the YC cabin class, drinks outside the YC are included up to 14 euros, and if the drink costs more, then the charge is just the drink price minus 14 euros, so a 16 euro drink would be 2 euros for YC passengers.

 

The minibar has fruit juice, coke, Fanta orange soda, and Heineken, which are restocked daily.  There is a bowl of fruit, one small can of Pringles and a jar of mixed nuts which are not restocked.  The drink selection you picked before the cruise (I picked Glen Grant Scotch) is delivered the first night.  Our butler told us to just bring it home with us since we could get all our drinks at the YC bar. 

 

We went to the YC restaurant for lunch around 1pm, enjoying a bottle of champagne.

 

Our luggage was delivered between 2-2:30pm, and we rested until 5:30pm, when we went back to the Top Sail lounge for drinks till dinner time.  It seems that while the bartenders know the standard MSC drinks, they may not have any real history with being bartenders.  They didn’t know what a Lemon Drop was, and asked whether it should have Gin in it.  My wife didn’t enjoy it since it didn’t have any simple syrup like it usually should have.  I gave the bartender explicit instructions on how to make a Godfather (2 parts blended scotch to 1 part Disaronna liqueur) which did turn out well, even with a bit more ice than I usually use.  

 

Dinner was very good.  Two of us had the filet, one had the Prime Rib, and I had the salmon.  I’m noticing that MSC chefs don’t use as much cream in their dishes.  I was surprised to see that the light and healthy menu options included New England Clam Chowder, which normally isn’t ‘light’.  However, in this case, the soup was thinner than I am used to.  Also, the hollandaise sauce for the salmon was not very rich.  The salmon, Prime Rib and filet meat was perfectly prepared though.

 

We had a family with two young kids at the table next to us.  They had obviously used good sense and had told the YC folks to off-menu some cut up oranges and broccoli.  I usually have more veg at home, so I think I’ll be ordering some off-menu broccoli as well.

 

After dinner we went to the Top Sail lounge to be escorted by our butler past the entrance line (nice perk) to the 21:15 show of that night, which was “A Night on Broadway”.  The singers sang from a selection of productions like “West Side Story”, “Singing in the Rain” and“Night at the Opera”.  The show was very good, but marred by many people in the audience talking through the entire production, which was a bit annoying.

[ChattTenn]

Thanks for the post.  Following...

 

[Two Wheels Only]

I'll be on World America....in 2 years....😔

 

Any info/pictures/video of the Yacht Club areas would be very much appreciated.

[Nikodemos]

I'll post some pictures tomorrow, as I'll be staying on the ship during the day.

[Nikodemos]

Looking down at the Swarovski crystal staircase and Top Sail lounge.

 

YC Restaurant

 

A view of the MSC Grandiosa from our cabin.  We're close enough that we could connect to their wi-fi.

 

YC pool and hot tub on the sun deck (deck 22).  Both are quite small.

 

 

Edited June 11, 2023 by Nikodemos
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[Nikodemos]

Walk-in shower

 

 

Room 16028 with view of Grandiosa

Edited June 11, 2023 by Nikodemos
Add captions

[Nikodemos]

Saturday, June 10th, 2023 - Marseille

 

We’re taking advantage of the breakfast delivery option in our cabin this trip.  Today we got toast and croissants along with tea and hot chocolate.  After that we went to the concierge to get shuttle passes (17 euro/person) from the terminal to downtown Marseille.  Technically the port is next to downtown, but the port extends miles away to the west where we were docked, so walking is not an option.  The Notre-Dame de la Garde up on a high hill was our primary destination.  Bus, taxi or walking are some options to get there, but we decided to take the Tourist Train, which is actually a vehicle painted like a train with three open carriages behind it that drives up to the Notre-Dame (9 euro/person).  There are great views of Marseille from the top and the church is quite nice.

 

We got back to the ship by 1pm and immediately went up to the grill.  I had the BBQ Korean Grill burrito which was very tasty.  Afterwards my wife and sister-in-law went to the Aurea to get a pedicure, while her husband and I toured the ship, stopping by the Jean-Philippe Chocolate Cafe where I tried some gelato.  I have to say that the gelato here is not nearly as good as the gelato we got on Las Ramblas in Barcelona.  I’ll try the chocolate candy later and see if it’s any good.  In the afternoon, the pool areas in the non-YC part of the ship were mobbed, but the bars and casino were completely empty of people.  Even the atrium and La Plage areas had very few people during this port day.  We looked at the gym, and it’s quite large with all the workout machines and weights you would ever need.

 

At 5:15pm, the others went to the Raj Polo Tea Room.  They serve High Tea with little sandwiches and scones between 4pm and 5pm.  They were late for that but scored some cookies with their citrus and matcha tea they ordered.

 

At 7pm, we went to the “Palm Tree Lighting Event” on La Plage which again was lightly attended.  The crew were really pushing  the speciality dining packages.  At 8pm we headed back to the YC restaurant which was packed at this time.  Service was a bit slow this evening.  I had the filet with madeira sauce, an off-menu side of broccoli and the brownie chocolate ice cream.  My wife had some nice butter chicken which was good.  The others had the shrimp risotto and rack of lamb.  We strolled through the main part of the ship afterward and by this time the Master of the Sea bar with the UEFA final game being shown was very busy.

 

Picture of the Chateau D'If (prison from the Count of Monte Cristo) taken from the Notre-Dame de la Garde

[sverigecruiser]

1 hour ago, Nikodemos said:

Looking down at the Swarovski crystal staircase and Top Sail lounge.

 

YC Restaurant

 

A view of the MSC Grandiosa from our cabin.  We're close enough that we could connect to their wi-fi.

 

YC pool and hot tub on the sun deck (deck 22).  Both are quite small.

 

 

 

Thank you for the pictures. We will be on her in five weeks and appreciate everything you post!

 

Have a great trip!

Edited June 11, 2023 by sverigecruiser

[SingBill]

Thank you so much for your review thus far.  We board in October and will be doing the same itinerary and appreciate your detailed review (shuttle costs, tours etc). We are in Yacht Club as well

Edited June 11, 2023 by SingBill

[sverigecruiser]

 

Nikodemus, I have three questions for you, or anyone who may know the answer.

 

1. What brand of Champagne is included with the "Yacht Club drinkpackage"?

 

2. Do they have printed menus in the bars or is it only qr-code + app?

 

3. What's the Iris Galerie?

[Nikodemos]

5 hours ago, sverigecruiser said:

 

Nikodemus, I have three questions for you, or anyone who may know the answer.

 

1. What brand of Champagne is included with the "Yacht Club drinkpackage"?

We just had the champagne offered in the YC restaurant.  I'll check which brand it is tomorrow.

5 hours ago, sverigecruiser said:

 

2. Do they have printed menus in the bars or is it only qr-code + app?

Most places have both qr-code and printed menus.

5 hours ago, sverigecruiser said:

 

3. What's the Iris Galerie?

With this service, they take a picture of your eye and create an enhanced piece of art from it.

[travelwide]

Sounds great so far. Can you post who the YC and HD are. TY

[ConnieTact]

Thanks for doing this live review. We are on this ship in January also in YC. 
is the high tea you mention a replacement for the afternoon tea they usually serve in YC lounge? I just wondered if the butlers still serve it in the afternoons exclusively in YC. If not, do you pay extra in the other bar? Thanks

[Nikodemos]

Connie,

They don't do high tea in the YC anymore, but the Raj Polo Tea House serves an afternoon tea package with scones, sandwiches and sweets with a limited set of their teas.  And yes, this is a specialty venue, so the cost of the package is extra.

[Nikodemos]

Sunday, June 11th, 2023 - Genoa

 

I decided to stay on the ship today while the rest of the party went on a bus tour of Genoa for 3 hours.  As I started typing away at this post, the MSC Grandiosa pulled up alongside us at 8:40am.  Most of the ships in port are towered over by the World Europa, but the Grandiosa is almost as tall as us.

 

While the others are taking a bus tour of Genoa, I headed to the gym to work out in the morning.  It’s Sunday and bells all over Genoa rang at 8am and 10am, likely for church services at those times.  The main pool was not very crowded before noon today, and it’s a nice sunny 75 degrees F outside.

 

Coming back from the bus tour, they mentioned that at one of the stops they did some shopping and ate some fantastic focaccia bread with pesto and ricotta.  Definitely a highlight of that time outside the ship.

 

After lunch and a rest, we headed down to the Raj Polo Tea Room for afternoon tea.  They have a wide selection of teas, but no citrus teas.  We tried both hot and iced versions of the lemongrass and ginger tea and those were very good.  The afternoon tea package has a more narrow selection of black teas along with the tower of small sandwiches, two scones and some sweets.  This package is extra and not included with the YC.

 

Tony and I went to do the Venom slide, which goes from deck 20 down to deck 9.  When we got in line, they saw that we didn’t have the proper wristbands and told us to “go around the corner”.  What they should have said is that we needed to go to the water slide area where there was a table where you get a release form to sign and to get the wristband.   As it was around 5pm, there was a long line for both the forms and back at the venom.  My suggestion is to get the form signed early in the day when there is no line.  Also,  in the mid-day, there is no line for the venom (except on sea days).

 

After the venom, we went to the Elixir.  Even at 6:30pm, it was empty, so we were able to chat with Christian at the bar.  The drinks were 15 euros, so just the difference (1 euro) was the charge we had to pay for each drink.  I had a spin on an Old Fashioned, with two different types of vermouth.

 

After a drink, we thought we would take advantage of the YC hot tub.  Getting in though, I know now why they call it a whirlpool.  The temperature was not above 100 degrees, so barely above normal body temperature.  The jets were strong though.

 

After a quick shower, we got to the YC restaurant, which was packed at 8:15pm.  We had another great meal there, and then headed down to 60’s/70’s/80’s trivia at one of the bars.  However, the venue was already full, primarily with an elderly crowd.  So we went over to The Gin Project where they had a pool table, and we played pool while listening to the music from the Masters of the Sea brewery downstairs.  The Gin Project is really just a balcony and bar overlooking the brewery downstairs, so you have an elevated view of the band playing from above.  The music was classic rock based and the guitarist was really good.

 

Heading back to our rooms, we had received some small biscotti treats that were a nice snack for the next day.

[LouChamp]

Aloha. Thank you for taking the time to post reports. Enjoy!

[Dickuk]

Thanks for all the great info, we join the Europa next week on the same itenary.

Was there a charge for the Venom slide?

[Nikodemos]

Monday, June 12, 2023 - Naples

 

The ship arrived in Napoli at 11am, so we were able to sleep in late.  Since the YC restaurant closes around 9am for breakfast, we went up to the YC grill to order breakfast until 11:30 am.  You can get pancakes, omelets, eggs of any style and waffles here.  The hashbrowns are especially good, although the Europeans tend to make the bacon a bit floppy for my taste.  

 

Naples is really popular for excursions and they must have had 20 buses to handle all the people.  Unlike the other ports, where our butler just escorted us down to the bus, we had to all group in the Top Sail Lounge and wait till our bus number was called to be escorted en masse.   This took a lot longer than we expected and we left 45 minutes after the posted excursion departure time.  We had selected a tour of the Pompeii archeological site where Vasuvias had erupted in 72 AD, burying the city and all its inhabitants in volcanic ash.  The tour was very informative, but it was quite hot with all the stone at the site radiating the heat of the sun, even though it was around 75 degrees outside.  This tour would be miserable in the heat of July/August and much nicer in May.  Driving through the port back to the ship, we got caught in a huge line of semi trucks.  One of our guides had to get out, talk to the traffic police and allow us to go around the traffic jam.  We were grateful for that.

 

Being very hot, I went off to Sweet Temptations to get a Fluffernutter shake.  I thought it was a bit thin for a shake, so I was not very impressed.  The cost was 14 euros so it was covered by YC.

 

Arriving at the YC restaurant around 6:30pm, we didn’t see a lot of other diners.  We started with the Escargot, which was super good.  I highly recommend it.  A couple of us ordered spaghetti bolognese (off-menu) and I ordered a cheeseburger (off-menu).  We’ve had John and Devi as our waiters for the passed view nights, and they are great.  We also asked John to talk to the chef about preparing individual beef wellingtons (off-menu) for the next night.

 

After dinner we walked around the ship, and it was definitely noticeable how full the ship was during that time.  There were just tons of folks around in the public areas.  Looking at all these people, it’s clear that there is a wide diversity of ages here.  On our Holland America cruise, it definitely skewed older.  On our Disney Fantasy cruise, it was primarily families, with the older folks being part of multi-generational parties.  Here on the MSC World Europa, you see a lot more strollers than walkers, with most folks in their 30’s/40’s/50’s.

 

We decided to go to the Diva Extravaganza event in the theatre for the 11pm showing.  They had a guest singer from Liverpool doing various songs from Whitney Houston, Beyonce, Gloria Gaynor and Arethra Franklin.  The ladies liked the performance, but it’s just not my style of music I lean to.

[Nikodemos]

1 hour ago, Dickuk said:

Thanks for all the great info, we join the Europa next week on the same itinerary.

Was there a charge for the Venom slide?

No charge at all for the Venom.

[NCteacherlovescruising]

How long is the ship staying in the various ports?  I’m looking at booking at it just says “till” 7 PM or till 8 PM. 

[ConnieTact]

13 hours ago, Nikodemos said:

Connie,

They don't do high tea in the YC anymore, but the Raj Polo Tea House serves an afternoon tea package with scones, sandwiches and sweets with a limited set of their teas.  And yes, this is a specialty venue, so the cost of the package is extra.

Thanks Nikodemos, although that is really bad news! It seems YC is not as good as it was! What a shame. This was a perk I really enjoyed….without paying extra! 
how much is the afternoon tea at Ray Polo please? 
thanks again for your information.

[Cruiseforever11]

No yc high tea 😔 we are going on the Europa in October. Its my hubby's 1st time ever in yc and I've been going on about how you can have afternoon tea etc and how amazing it is. (Well it was on the Virtuosa). It's a shame they dont serve it on the Europa in yc. The tea house was somewhere I wanted to check out anyway so afternoon tea in there instead.

 

Thank you so far for your review on board @Nikodemos We've booked a tour round the Pompeii site and hopefully end of October it shouldn't be too warm to walk around and enjoy. 

We are looking forward to getting on board this ship.

Edited June 14, 2023 by Cruiseforever11

[ConnieTact]

1 hour ago, Cruiseforever11 said:

No yc high tea 😔 we are going on the Europa in October. Its my hubby's 1st time ever in yc and I've been going on about how you can have afternoon tea etc and how amazing it is. (Well it was on the Virtuosa). It's a shame they dont serve it on the Europa in yc. The tea house was somewhere I wanted to check out anyway so afternoon tea in there instead.

 

Thank you so far for your review on board @Nikodemos We've booked a tour round the Pompeii site and hopefully end of October it shouldn't be too warm to walk around and enjoy. 

We are looking forward to getting on board this ship.

@Cruiseforever11I know!!! It’s such a shame! I’ll miss it but won’t pay for it in the speciality unless it’s cheap as I feel it’s been ‘taken away’ from us! We are back on Virtuosa in October and I will report back on if they are still serving it on there. Maybe they will on the U.K. cruises? It’s a British thing so maybe MSC will keep it for Southampton sailings? 🤔 I hope so!

@Nikodemos Im enjoying your report so far too! Thank you! 

[Cruiseforever11]

13 minutes ago, ConnieTact said:

@Cruiseforever11I know!!! It’s such a shame! I’ll miss it but won’t pay for it in the speciality unless it’s cheap as I feel it’s been ‘taken away’ from us! We are back on Virtuosa in October and I will report back on if they are still serving it on there. Maybe they will on the U.K. cruises? It’s a British thing so maybe MSC will keep it for Southampton sailings? 🤔 I hope so!

@Nikodemos Im enjoying your report so far too! Thank you! 

Hi ya @ConnieTact i hope your both well. Yes I guess it's a British thing but it was so good the afternoon tea in Yc, it was a highlight for daughter and i when we got back from an excursion after we worked up an appetite. (Not every day of course!) I was going to do the  tea speciality on the Europa anyway as I like my teas.

I don't think I will be going back on the Virtuosa for a while now as I'm Virtuosa out as they say as sailed on her 7 times. I've got Europa Oct and Seascape Dec and then back to a small ship the Orchestra (which we did many moons agos) next June. I am though really looking forward to the Europa, I think she looks stunning and very beautiful! 😊

Edited June 14, 2023 by Cruiseforever11

[Nikodemos]

On 6/12/2023 at 1:56 AM, travelwide said:

Sounds great so far. Can you post who the YC and HD are. TY

The YC Director is Melania Mauro.  I don't know the HD.